steobel



(No Model.)

V. 0. STROBEL.

STEEL PLANT.

No. 361,653. PatentedApnlQ, 1887.

Fig. 1.

Attorney Witnesses N PETERS. Pmumlho n nar. Washington, D, c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

- VICTOR O. STROBEL, OF PHILADELPHIA,PENNSYLVANIA, A SSIGNOR TO GORDON,STROBEL 8s LAUREAU, OF SAME PLACE.

STE EL- PLANT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 361,653, dated April19, 1887.

Application filed February 15 1886. Serial No. 191,917. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, VICTOR 0. STRoBE'L, of Philadelphia, Philadelphiacounty, Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvementsin Steel-Plants, of which the following is a specification.

This invention pertains to improvements in plants for the manufacture ofsteel by'the pnuematic process; and it relates to devices ofconstruction and arrangement, as hereinafter distinctly described, andpointed out in the following description,taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation of aconvertershop, illustrating my improvements, the casting-ladle,ingot-molds, and the roof and floor of the shop being shown in verticalsection; Fig. 2, a plan of the same with sundry parts shown inhorizontal section upon lines a of Fig. 1; Fig. 3, a vertical section ofthe con verter, shown, however, as being supported upon a direct-actinglift; Fig. 4:, a side ,elevation, partly in section, of a converter,exhibiting a modified form of wind-box and a modified form of converterjuncture; and Fig. 5, a side elevation of the end of the crane-armbearing the convei-terbowl, and also bearing the casting-ladle.

In the drawings, A indicates the roof or ceiling of theconverter-.shopjora platform disposed substantially as a ceiling; B, thefloor of the converter-shop; O, a cup ola of ordinary construction,shown as having its charging-door arranged to be served from theplatform A; D, the post of an ordinary hydraulic crane; E, the arm ofthe crane, the same being arranged to be raised and lowered by thehydraulic mechanism of the crane-post; F, a converter-bowl supported atthe extremity of the crane-arm, the crane being so proportioned anddisposed that the converter may be p roperly brought below thetapping-spout of the cupola; G, trunnions upon the converter-bowlsupported in bearings attached to the cranearm, the trunnions serving topermit the converter-bowl to be tipped by the action of the usualworm-gearing, the axis of the trunnions being disposed at right anglesto the cranearm; H, in Fig. 3, a direct-acting lift, to be operatedhydraulically or otherwise, serving to illustrate a modification hereinfurther referred to; J, the converter-top provided with a contractingtapping-aperture for the escape of the gases, &c., the converter-topappearing in Figs. 1, 2, and 3 as being arranged to telescope over theconverter-bowl, while in Fig. 4 a butt-joint is employed. There are twoof the converter-tops disposed within the'sweep of the converter-bowl,as seen in Figs. 1. and 2. K is a bustle-pipe or wind-box arrangedaround the upperportion of the converter-top, the wind-box being formed,as clearly shown, by means of a super-roof over a portion of theconverter, a portion of the shell of the con-' verter-top forming thefloor of the wind-box; L, awind-pipe, reaching from the ceiling abovedownward to thewind-boxofthe converter-top, this pipe serving to conveyblasts to the converter-top,andals0insuspendingtheconverter top over theceiling, each converter-top being similarly provided and suspended; M,dipping tuyeres, removably secured in the con verter-top, the upper endsof the tuyeres being in communication with the wind-box, while the lowerends are arranged to dip into the molten metal in the converter-bowl; N,a door arranged at the upper end of each tuyere to serve in permittingthe tuyeres to be inspected, removed, replaced, &c.; O, a chimney orstack arranged over each converter-top, to serve in carrying off theproducts of combustion during the blow; P a seriesof ingotmolds arrangedin a line in a pit Within appropriate reach of the crane-arm; Q, arailway along this row of ingot-molds; R, a ladle-car fitted to travelupon this track; S, a castingladle mounted upon this car, and providedwith a bottomoutlet-aperture; T, a plug fitted with lever mechanism forits operation, and adapted for the opening and closing of theoutlet-aperture in the casting-ladle; U, a series of ingot-moldsarranged in a pit in a circle within appropriate reach of the crane-arm;V, in Fig. 5, a castingladle, similar to the casting-ladle S, and to besimilarly provided with tapping mechanism and rigidly mounted upon theend of the crane-arm beyond the tipping converterbowl; and \V, a railwayleading to within the sweep of the crane-arm and serving for use inhandling converter-bowls, &c., when the same are to be removed forrelining or other repair.

The metal, being properly melted down in the cupola, is tapped into theconverter-bowl, which is swung around to the cupola. The converter bowl,with its charge of molten metal, is then swung around to a pointdirectly beneath one of the converter-tops J, and the hydraulic crane isthen operated to elevate the converter-bowl upward, until a joint isformed with the converter-top, with the tuyeres dipping down into themolten metal. The charge in the converter-bowl is then blown for U theproper length of time, the blast having been put on, preferably, justbefore the tuyeres reached the'molten metal during the elevation of theconverter-bowl. When the blow is completed, the crane is operated tolower the bowl from the converter-top, and the converterbowl is thenswung around and tipped to deliver its charge into the casting-ladle S.The converter-bowl is then swung around to receive a new charge from thecupola, and the ingot-molds P are filled from the casting-ladle S, whichis moved over the proper mold, and the mold filled by lifting the plugwhich opens the discharge-aperture.

There being two converter-tops Within the sweep of the crane-arm,one maybe used while another is being repairedas, for instance, when it is tobe relined or provided with new tuyeres. When the converter-bowl needsrelining or repair, it is carried away to the repair-shop by means of atruck upon track W, and a duplicate converter-bowl may be immediatelyplaced upon the crane-arm, so that operations may be practicallycontinuous.

' The, converter bowl may close upward against the converter-top, so asto form a buttjoint, as illustrated in Fig. 4; but I prefer that theconverter-bowl shall telescope upwardly within the converter-top, asillustrated in the other figures. By thus telescoping the converter-bowl into the converter top provided with fixed tuyeres, I amenabled, by proper vertical adjustment of the bowl, to always maintain,the desired distance between the mouths of the tuyeres and the bottom ofthe bowl-a distanceliable toincrease by reason of the burning away ofthe points of the tuyeres and of the bottom lining of the converterbowl.

In Fig. 3 I illustrate the telescopic converter independent of aswinging-crane mechanism, the converter-bowl being mounted upon adirect-acting lift. The bowl so mounted may be suspended in trunnions,so as to be poured by tipping; or it may be arranged by an upwardextension of the metallic shell of the converter-top, the doors N beingformed upon the roof of the wind-box, while in Fig. 4: the wind-box isarranged in bustle form around the top of the converter-top, the blastbeing carried from the wind-box to the tuyeres through branch pipesleading downward to disk-like boxes at the upper ends of the tuyeres,the doors Nin such case being arranged upon these boxes. i

Where the casti ug-pit is arranged in a c1rcle in range of the crane, asat U, Fig. .2, the crane-arm may be utilized as the carrier for thecasting-ladle, or the casting-ladle may be supported upon a secondcrane-arm fitted to swing upon the crane-post D. Fig. 5 illustrates thecasting-ladle as attached to the end of the same crane-arm which bearsthe con verter-bowl.

Converters have been proposed with an upper section having adownwardly-projecting shell, upwardly within which the bottom sectionmight be inserted; but in such proposed construction the tuyeres'wereformed in the lower section and the downwardly-projecting upper shellreferred to was a mere expedient for getting the wind connections tothese tuyeres. The proposed construction referred to is broadlydistinguishable from my device, in which thelower section of theconverter is inserted bodily within the lining-wall of the uppersection, which upper section is provided with one or moredownwardly-projecting tuyeres.

A converter has been proposed in' which there was a removablebowl-section without tuyeres and a fixed top section with tuyeres, thetwo parts being united by a butt-joint. This proposed construction isreadily distinguishable from my device, where I cause the bowl-sectionto enter telescopically within the upper section, so that the two partscan be adj usted in relation to each other, in order that thetuyere-points may bear the desired relation to the bowl-bottom.

Converters of the kind last referred to have,

able wind-connections; but in no case, so far as I k now, have suchconverters been provided with windboxes formed upon the convertertop bymeans of a super-roof and a portion of the converter-top, the shell ofthe convertertop forming the floor of the wind-box.

Steel-plants have been proposed with portable converters mounted upontrucks, so as to be adapted to be transported from the receiving-pointat the cupola to the pouringpoint'at the casting-pit; but, so far as Iknow, a steel-plant has never been proposed in which a fixedconverter-top and a cupola were arranged at equal radial distances fromthe center of a postcraue whose radial arm supported the bowl portion ofthe converter and served in maintaining and adjusting the bowl asproposed by me; nor am I aware that it has even been proposedto supportthe bowl portion of a converter ona crane-arm and employ it inconjunction with the converter-top suspended from the roof or ceiling,so as to leave a clear space below the converter-top for themanipulation of the bowl; nor am I aware that it has ever been proposedto support a converterbowl on a crane-arm arranged in combination with apair of converter-tops and a castingp1t disposed at equal radialdistances from the center of rotation of the crane, as proposed by me. i

I claim as my invention 1. In a steel-plant, the combination of a fixedconverter-top, one or more tuyeres projecting downward therefrom, awind-box and blastpipe in connection with the tuyeres, a converter-bowlfitted to adjoin said converter-top, and a crane-post and radial armsupporting the converter-bowl and serving to adjust the same intoconjunction with the fixed convertertop, substantially as and for thepurpose set forth.

2. In a steel-plant, the combination of a fixed converter-top, one ormore tuyeres projecting downward therefrom, a wind-box and b1astpipe inconnection wit-h the tuyeres, a converter-bo'wl fitted to enter and movetelescopically upward within the lining of said converter-top, and acrane or lift to serve in supporting and adjusting the converter-bowlinto conjunction with the converter-top, substantially as and for thepurpose set forth.

3. In a steel-plant, the combination of a con verter top, one or moretuyeres projecting downwardly therefrom, a wind-box and blastpipe inconnection with the tuyeres, a converter-bowl fitted to enter and movetelescopically within the converter-top, and mechanism, substantially asdescribed, for adjusting the distance between the bottom lining of theconverter and the mouth of the tuyere or tuyeres, substantially as andfor the purpose set forth.

4, In a steel-plant, the combination of a converter-top, tuyeresprojecting downwardly through the wall thereof, a wind-box encirclingthe converter-top over the upper end of and in communication with thetuyeres and formed by a portion of the shell ofthe converter-top and asuper-roof, a blast-pipe connected to the wind-box, and a converterbowldisposed below the converter-top, substantially as and for the purposeset forth.

5. A steel-plant comprising a cupola or other furnace adapted forpreparing a charge of metal for a converter, a rotary post-and-armcrane, a converter-bowl mounted at the end of the cranearmand adapted tobe swept into position to receive a charge from the cupola, a fixedconverter-top disposed in the path swept by the converter bowl andprovided with tuyeres and blast-connections, a casting-ladle having adischarge-aperture, a pit for the reception of a series of ingot-molds,and a carrier for said casting-ladle adapted to support saidcasting-ladle in a position to receive a charge from said converter-bowland to bring said discharge-aperture over the molds in said pit,

substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

6. A steel-plant comprising a roof or ceiling, a converter suspendedtherefrom and provided with tuyeres and blast-connections, a cupola orother furnaces adapted for preparing metal for conversion, acasting-pit, a cranepost, a crane arm fitted to move vertically uponsuch crane-post, and a converter-bowl supported by such crane arm andadapted to swing to said cupola, to said converter-top, or to saidcasting-pit, substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

7. Asteelplant comprising a rotary cranepost, a crane-arm fitted toadjust vertically thereon, a converter-bowl supported by said arm, acupola, two converter-tops provided with tuyeres, and a casting-pitdisposed in circular series in the path of the converter-bowl,substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

VICTOR O. STROBEL. Ni tn esses:

ARNOLD KATZ, A. A. BROOKMY.

